Goodman and Lott Try Out For U.S. National Team

All-American Chelsea Goodman (pictured) and Erica Lott are in Colorado this weekend trying out for the U.S. National Team. (Photo by Mark Philbrick/BYU Photo)

COLORADO SPRINGS -- Two members of the BYU women's volleyball team will be in Colorado Springs, Colo., this weekend trying out for the U.S. Women's National Team. Outside hitter Chelsea Goodman and rightside hitter Erica Lott, both of whom just completed their junior seasons with the Cougars, will join 108 other athletes looking to join the National Team.

The tryout runs from 6 p.m. on Friday through 11 a.m. on Sunday. Throughout the tryout process, USA Volleyball will be identifying prospective athletes for the U.S. Women's Volleyball National Team, U.S. Women's A2 Team and U.S. Women's Junior National Team.

The tryout will use two waves called Blue and Red Groups. The Blue Group will go through physical testing and triples between 5-6:20 p.m. on Friday, while the Red Group follows between 6:30-7:50 p.m. Saturday's first session focuses on defense, serve/pass and position work. The Blue Group participates in the drills between 8-9:55 a.m., while the Red Group takes the court between 10 a.m. and 1:55 p.m. All setters, liberos and outside attackers will participate in setting and serve receive drills between 1:30-2:10 p.m.

The second Saturday session, a combination of drills and a controlled scrimmage, begins at 2:15 with the Blue Group followed by the Red Group at 4:45 p.m. Tournament-type action will close out the tryouts on Sunday with the Blue Group going from 8-10 a.m., while the Red Group plays between 10 a.m. and noon.

Contributors on both the BYU front row and back row, Goodman and Lott helped the Cougars achieve a 25-6 overall record in 2006, including their 23rd NCAA appearance in the 26 years of the event.

Goodman, from Mesa, Ariz., earned AVCA All-West Region First Team and All-Mountain West Conference recognition after leading the MWC in kills per game and points as well as being ranked among the top 10 in aces and digs per game. The powerful outside hitter racked up a league-leading 18 double-doubles on the year, bringing her career total to 34, which ranks third all-time in MWC history. Goodman, who was twice named the MWC Player of the Week, also recorded 20 or more kills in seven matches this season, including a career-high 27 against TCU -- the most by a Cougar since 2003.

Lott, another All-MWC selection, made a switch from the outside to the rightside in the offseason and came up big for the Cougars all year long. After earning MVP honors in both of BYU's preseason tournaments, she finished the regular season ranked third in the league in both kills and points and ninth in blocks. Lott, who received MWC Player of the Week honors after leading BYU to a win over then-No. 4 Stanford, topped the 20-kill mark four times this season while racking up eight double-doubles.

Female volleyball players who are United States citizens were eligible to tryout for the U.S. National Team, provided they have completed high school or are high school athletes born in 1987 or earlier. College athletes born in 1988 and 1989 will be evaluated for both the Junior National Team and National Team programs.

Eight Cougars have had the opportunity to compete for the U.S., most recently Lindsy Hartsock and Lauren Richards in 2003 as members of the A-2 U.S. National Team. Richards also played for the A-2 team in 2002. Nina Puikkonen was a memeber of the A-2 team in 2001 before moving up to the U.S. National Team in 2002. Amy Steele Gant and Korie Rogers both competed on the National Team in 1998. Charlene Johnson enjoyed a six-year stint on the National Team from 1996-2001, including the 2000 Summer Olympic Games, after playing on the U.S. Extended A Team in 1994. Dylann Duncan and Raelyn Hoglund also played for the U.S. after their respective BYU careers.